1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to, for example, an electrical connector device and an optical connector device including a pair of mutually engageable connectors, such as electrical connectors and optical connectors, and more particularly, to a connector device in which one of the connectors is a cable connector.
2. Description of the Related Art
Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2013-26159 describes, as a connector device of this type, an example of an electrical connector device. This connector device includes a first connector and a second connector that are mutually engageable. The first connector includes a first housing and a first terminal disposed in the first housing. The second connector includes a second housing having a recess that receives the first housing and a second terminal that is disposed in the second housing and electrically connectable to the first terminal.
The first housing is connected to one end portion of a cable and includes a first opening portion that is provided on a peripheral wall of the first housing at one side and enables the other end portion of the cable to extend to the outside of the first housing. Accordingly, the second housing includes a second opening portion that enables the other end portion of the cable to extend to the outside of the second housing.
Two actions are required to engage the first and second connectors of the connector device together. The first action is to insert the first connector into the recess in the second connector. The first action is performed by moving the first connector vertically relative to the recess. Next, as the second action, the first connector needs to be moved horizontally relative to the second connector so that the first connector is retained in the recess. In the second action, projections that project outward from an outer peripheral surface of the first connector slide under projections that project inward from an inner peripheral surface of the recess, so that the first and second connectors are locked.
In the above-described structure according to the related art, the two actions, which are the vertical movement and the horizontal movement, are required to lock the first and second connectors. Therefore, the engagement process is very cumbersome, and it is difficult to automate the process by using a robot.